We do a good job of hiding our RB behind our FB. I think we could mix it up and hide Russ behind MRob.

I don't know why they have never used Robinson for a direct snap or a potential throw. The guy has a great arm (well, at least he did in college) and he threw very well on the move. Split RW out wide and watch SF crap their pants as our FB takes the snap and rolls then throws. It would be pretty fun to watch the misdirection that could take place. It might even force them into burning a timeout due to the confusion of rolling out a formation they hadn't seen from us before and aren't sure how to manage.

The Pistol was pioneered by Nevada's Chris Ault in 2005, and was used extensively and successfully with Kaepernick in his career there. Now, of course, the 49ers run the Pistol looks, and the frequency of those looks has jumped up quite a bit over the past few games. It's almost a certainty that Seattle will have to deal with it on Sunday. Making the Pistol formation even more of a relevant topic for Seattle fans this week was that for the first time this season, I think, (probably ever, I'd guess), Seattle ran a couple of plays out of the formation as well.

Pretty cool. Definitely something to watch for in the 49er game. Remember folks, you notice the pistol by the QB seemingly in shotgun formation, but instead of the average 6-7 yards back he is about 4 yards back with the RB directly behind him.

SharkHawk wrote:We do a good job of hiding our RB behind our FB. I think we could mix it up and hide Russ behind MRob.

I don't know why they have never used Robinson for a direct snap or a potential throw. The guy has a great arm (well, at least he did in college) and he threw very well on the move. Split RW out wide and watch SF crap their pants as our FB takes the snap and rolls then throws. It would be pretty fun to watch the misdirection that could take place. It might even force them into burning a timeout due to the confusion of rolling out a formation they hadn't seen from us before and aren't sure how to manage.

That would be incredible. Touchdown pass from Mike Robinson to Russel Wilson.

The 49ers use much more variety and multiplicity in their Pistol looks, often times giving Kaepernick three or four options - to hand off, throw, or run it himself. They do read-option looks, triple-option looks, and it's going to be a challenge for Seattle to defend them. As ESPN's Liz Mathews pointed out on twitter, the 49ers have used pistol 33 times over their last two games, compared to only 30 times the first 12 games of season.

It surprises me that this thread and described trend has attracted so little attention on this message board going into this Sunday night. I wonder what that says about us?

It is a effective play, but a dangerous one as it puts the qb in a much more precarious position than other formations including the RZ.precarious in that the qb is a lot close to the LOS, and if a blitzer makes it through in time.. lites out, the qb has no time to scramble.Russ could do it very effectively, but you know its just a numbers game until Russ gets hurt. Think RG3

Bobblehead wrote:It is a effective play, but a dangerous one as it puts the qb in a much more precarious position than other formations including the RZ.precarious in that the qb is a lot close to the LOS, and if a blitzer makes it through in time.. lites out, the qb has no time to scramble.Russ could do it very effectively, but you know its just a numbers game until Russ gets hurt. Think RG3

??? QB is in shotgun when in the pistol. Guess I don't understand your comment on him being closer to the LOS. The pistol is more about how the RB lines up compared to other "shotgun" formations....in pistol the RB is directly behind the QB (who is in shotgun).

In most general terms, the Pistol is a truncated version of the "Shotgun" formation, but in its case, the quarterback is only about four-and-a-half yards behind center/line of scrimmage, instead of the customary seven or eight yards in a shotgun look. Further, in this look, the running back is directly behind the quarterback, instead of being offset, right next to him as you'd see in Shotgun.

Last edited by ImTheScientist on Sat Dec 22, 2012 11:03 am, edited 1 time in total.

The 49ers use much more variety and multiplicity in their Pistol looks, often times giving Kaepernick three or four options - to hand off, throw, or run it himself. They do read-option looks, triple-option looks, and it's going to be a challenge for Seattle to defend them. As ESPN's Liz Mathews pointed out on twitter, the 49ers have used pistol 33 times over their last two games, compared to only 30 times the first 12 games of season.

It surprises me that this thread and described trend has attracted so little attention on this message board going into this Sunday night. I wonder what that says about us?

Well, anybody who watches college football has seen an awful lot of the pistol the past few years from multiple programs. It's not exactly new and ground breaking stuff. Although it is new to the NFL.

The 49ers use much more variety and multiplicity in their Pistol looks, often times giving Kaepernick three or four options - to hand off, throw, or run it himself. They do read-option looks, triple-option looks, and it's going to be a challenge for Seattle to defend them. As ESPN's Liz Mathews pointed out on twitter, the 49ers have used pistol 33 times over their last two games, compared to only 30 times the first 12 games of season.

It surprises me that this thread and described trend has attracted so little attention on this message board going into this Sunday night. I wonder what that says about us?

Well, anybody who watches college football has seen an awful lot of the pistol the past few years. It's not exactly new and ground breaking stuff. Although it is new to the NFL.

Thanks for merging the threads J. Didn't see Montana's, it must have been deeply buried.

Bobblehead wrote:It is a effective play, but a dangerous one as it puts the qb in a much more precarious position than other formations including the RZ.precarious in that the qb is a lot close to the LOS, and if a blitzer makes it through in time.. lites out, the qb has no time to scramble.Russ could do it very effectively, but you know its just a numbers game until Russ gets hurt. Think RG3

??? QB is in shotgun when in the pistol. Guess I don't understand your comment on him being closer to the LOS. The pistol is more about how the RB lines up compared to other "shotgun" formations....in pistol the RB is directly behind the QB (who is in shotgun).

In most general terms, the Pistol is a truncated version of the "Shotgun" formation, but in its case, the quarterback is only about four-and-a-half yards behind center/line of scrimmage, instead of the customary seven or eight yards in a shotgun look. Further, in this look, the running back is directly behind the quarterback, instead of being offset, right next to him as you'd see in Shotgun.

No.. qb is not in shotgun.. (sure qb is not right under center, but not as far back as a typical shotgun formation) The QB is only maybe a couple of yards off the LOS.. Shot gun you are typically further back.